Is Intuitive Surgical developing the da Vinci System for telesurgical applications?
Intuitive Surgical’s goal is to extend the benefits of minimally invasive surgery to the broadest possible base of patients. Our strategy to achieve this includes the development of products that allow any physician today to rapidly expand his/her surgical technique and capabilities. Our robotic surgical platforms currently enable surgeons to perform complex procedures using a minimally invasive approach. In the interest of expediting surgeon training and expanding training programs, we are exploring telesurgery as a way to facilitate surgeon-to-surgeon proctoring and coaching. We see telesurgery as a means to allow surgeons to get up to speed in robotic-assisted surgery under the guidance of leading specialists – with less disruption to their clinical schedules and less impact on their patients.
